Finding God Through Meditation (Week 5 of 7)
Consider…the continual motion of our life, never resting night nor day, but going forward without ceasing and every day more and more wastes itself; so that it may not unfitly be compared to a candle, which, by little and little, consumes itself, and when it gives the clearest light, the sooner it approaches unto its end; also a flower, which springs... Read More

Most people are not aware that conversations between demons actually happen. One record of such a conversation between demons is available to us through the brilliant mind of C.S. Lewis and the Screwtape Letters.
Lewis reveals that Screwtape is a senior demon who is teaching a younger demon to tempt a Christian to sin, despair,and faithlessness. Lewis’ insight into the reality of demonic temptation... Read More

There are key strategies of indirect attack that the enemy of our souls uses to significantly disrupt our spiritual progress. One is the corruption of human sexuality. As the analogy of holy spousal love is one of the most effective in understanding divine intimacy, the enemy desires to corrupt human sexuality in order to further obscure what it means to understand the possibilities of union with God.
Similarly,... Read More

Life, As I Find It
While working on the notes for C.S. Lewis’ The Annotated Screwtape Letters, I decided to do a little reading about the real world of demons. I picked up Hostage To The Devil: The Possession and Exorcism of Five Contemporary Americans by Malachi Martin, a remarkable study that was meticulously researched and lucidly written without succumbing to sensationalism. It was an unnerving... Read More

Life, As I Find It
Inasmuch as my life is still consumed with projects related to C.S. Lewis, I’ve been thinking about a little-known aspect of his life: the penalty he paid for being an outspoken Christian.
In the 1940’s, while Lewis became a best-selling author, lecturer and broadcaster, his co-workers at Oxford University were not pleased. For them, Lewis had broken an unwritten code by talking... Read More

On a Friday evening in July, 1940, CS Lewis and a friend listened to Hitler on the radio. Lewis wondered if he was weaker than other people since he found that, while the speech lasted, it was hard not to believe what Hitler was saying. He marveled how statements which he knew to be lies sounded convincingly true as long as they were spoken “unflinchingly.”
It shouldn’t be too much of a surprise,... Read More

In 1942, C.S. Lewis published one of his most enduring and endearing books. The Screwtape Letters is a collection of imaginative epistles from a senior devil to his junior colleague, outlining how he should handle his “patient.” Lewis wrote the book as a series of essays for The Guardian newspaper and confessed that the pieces were not fun to write.
Over the years Lewis’ Luciferian letters have... Read More

Spiritual Warfare & Screwtape Letters:
What the Devil Doesn't Want You to Hear
With Halloween just around the corner you might be turning your attention to thoughts of spiritual warfare and those dark realities of our fallen world and the spiritual realm. If you have never read the Screwtape Letters, there is no better time. I suspect you will be surprised at how relevant it is to your own spiritual... Read More

Dear Father John, I have been working on my prayer life consistently for a few years. During this time I have been on retreats and other similar activities. I have noticed a strange pattern: the conservative groups I have had contact with talk a lot about spiritual warfare, but the less traditionalist groups don’t. Until now, I haven’t paid much attention to the discrepancy. But lately I was wondering... Read More

Dan Burke and Melissa Elson interview Kathleen Beckman on her book "When Women Pray" and what distinguishes the prayer of women. The post The Prayer of Women appeared first on SpiritualDirection.com / Catholic Spiritual Direction.

Dan Burke and Melissa Elson interview Dr. Aaron Kheriaty about his book "The Catholic Guide to Depression" and a multifactored integrated approach to depression. The post An Integrated Approach to Depression appeared first on SpiritualDirection.com / Catholic Spiritual Direction.